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Happy Pioneer Day! Here are today’s temperatures:

☀️ 61 – 101° in Logan

🌤️ 74 – 103° in Salt Lake | 💧 10%

🌦️ 82 – 107° in St. George | 💧⚡ 40%

What a way to start Pioneer Day!

Crowds at Washington Square in Salt Lake City celebrated the announcement that the Winter Olympics would return to Utah in 2034.

There are plenty of ways to celebrate our state holiday — including the Deseret News Marathon. However you observe it, this is the day we mark the entrance of Latter-day Saint pioneers into the Salt Lake Valley.

However, my colleague Holly Richardson notes that pioneering did not end in 1847. We can take lessons learned from early pioneers, like grit, determination, sacrifice, a strong work ethic and a powerful sense of community, and apply them to our lives today.

Read more about what it takes to be a modern pioneer.

Also on our minds:

The 5 best hikes to escape Pioneer Day heat
Secret Service director resigns after condemnation over assassination attempt
How his soccer-loving family led Utahn Taylor Booth to his Olympic moment

It’s official. The Olympics are coming back to Utah

Utah will host the Olympics again.

Lisa Riley Roche of the Deseret News was in Paris as the International Olympic Committee awarded the 2034 Winter Games to Salt Lake City.

The vote was announced at 4:21 a.m. MDT after a lengthy discussion respecting the rules of the IOC and the World Anti Doping Agency.

The state's final pitch to the IOC was made by Utah Gov. Spencer Cox, Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall, Olympian Lindsey Vonn, Paralympian Dani Aravich, U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee Chair Gene Sykes, and the top leaders of the Salt Lake City-Utah Committee for the Games — president and CEO Fraser Bullock and chair Catherine Raney Norman.

“We have a history together,” Cox told the IOC. “We have been good partners before and you can count on us.”

Read more about the historic announcement.

Thousands in Salt Lake City celebrate as Utah gets the Games

From Lois M. Collins: The roar in Salt Lake City’s Washington Square as the International Olympic Committee awarded it the 2034 Olympics could have rivaled standing next to a jet engine or the highest-decibel rock concert. A crowd of at least a couple thousand people screamed “SLC! SLC!” as it became official that the Winter Games are coming back.

It was a strange night, starting slow and quiet and building as the announcement neared. As the live feed from Paris kicked off in Washington Square, a crowd appeared. Hundreds and hundreds of people crowded near the big screens to chant “USA! USA!” and “Utah! Utah!” When the Paris presentation began, it was a bit of joyful bedlam.

They came dressed in clothes that looked like American flags, stars and stripes plentiful. They waved small Olympic ring flags, cheered boisterously when a familiar face appeared on the screen — think Gov. Spencer Cox or Salt Lake Mayor Erin Mendenhall — and clapped whenever they heard the word “Olympics.”

More in Olympics coverage

Inside the last-minute drama that brought changes to Utah’s Olympics bid (Deseret News)
Church of Jesus Christ releases statement: ‘We stand ready to support the 2034 Olympic Games’ (Deseret News)

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The World

Sarah Jane Weaver: The road to the Olympics is paved with disappointment, discouragement — and overcoming (Deseret News)
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Sports

How his soccer-loving family led Utahn Taylor Booth to his Olympic moment (Deseret News)
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Check your inbox tomorrow morning for more news from the Beehive State and beyond!

And reply to this email or email newsletters@deseretnews.com to tell us what you think of Utah Today.

Thanks for reading!

— Ariel

Thousands in Salt Lake City celebrate as Utah gets the Games

More in Olympics coverage

Utah

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Faith

Feds launch probe as Delta continues to grapple with software issues (Deseret News)